CU-Boulder planning board approves athletics facilities plan

But some misgivings about having been skipped over in process

Some University of Colorado faculty members are peeved that the proposed $142 million athletics facilities plan was brought to the Board of Regents before they were able to review and approve it.

The Boulder Campus Planning Commission typically reviews and approves all program plans for the Boulder campus before they are brought before the chancellor and vice chancellors and then the Board of Regents.

But this time, the plan skipped the campus commission, which acts as an advisory group to the Boulder chancellor, and went straight to the regents. Some commission members said they feel that chain of events is inappropriate and makes it seem like the campus commission has no real bearing on Boulder-specific building plans.

CU aerospace engineering professor Bill Emery said bringing the plan back to the campus level after the regents had already approved it makes the commission seem weak.

"If the commission is just going to be a rubber stamp, we can quit going to those meetings," Emery said. "I have nothing against athletics. I like going to football games as much as anybody, but it does give you the feeling like 'Hey the athletic guys don't have to go by the rules.'"

He said this situation creates a public perception that the athletic department rules the campus and that faculty, staff and other departments don't matter.

"We didn't really have a voice," Emery said. "This was a done deal and then 'Oh, guys you want to bless it?'"

'CU spokesman: Calendar issues drove sequencing

CU officials said the plan went to the regents first because construction has to begin soon and the next full Board of Regents meeting isn't until February.

"The program plan for the $142 million athletics facilities upgrade calls for Folsom Field to be complete for the start of the 2015 school year, which means construction needs to begin as soon as possible," CU spokesman Mark Miller said. "The program plan was not completely ready to go before the Boulder Campus Planning Commission (BCPC) in November as had been hoped."

CU electrical, computer and energy engineering department chair Michael Lightner said those people abstained because they had questions or concerns about the athletics facilities plan that weren't addressed.

"If we had to wait four more months to have the athletics thing go to the regents athletic committee, who cares?" Lightner said during the meeting. "To have the regents approve something and then come here and we've got a bunch of questions . . . and you saw five people abstain. They're being nice. It's not saying no, even though it's the equivalent of a no vote. It's just not the right process."

The 25-member campus planning commission reviews all Boulder campus capital projects to make sure they "support the academic goals of the university, adhere to the Boulder Campus Master Plan, reflect consideration for the historical development of the campus, preserve open space and improve the environment of the campus," according to the commission's website.

Some of the commission members argued that the regents' early approval didn't allow them to consider the athletics facilities upgrades in the larger scheme of campus construction projects, something the commission studies heavily and considers when approving all new projects.

CU athletic director Rick George first presented the plan at the Dec. 4 joint meeting of the regents capital construction subcommittee and intercollegiate athletics subcommittee. The plan was then approved by the full Board of Regents later that afternoon during the board's regular meeting.

On Thursday, George repeated his pitch to the commission, which was then asked to vote on the plan even though it already had the regents' approval.

CCHE and Legislature will also hear plans

The regents are the second-to-last stop on the way to full approval for a program plan. The regents are the ultimate authority on capital construction projects or any project with money tied to it, CU officials said.

After the regents, a program plan typically goes before the Colorado Commission on Higher Education for review and/or approval. The athletics facilities plan will also go before the Colorado Legislature's capital development committee in January.

The regents asked few questions during George's presentation last week. At Thursday's commission meeting, however, members asked about issues such as parking, the debt the campus would take on during construction, how the construction would affect students' ability to get to class, how much revenue the project would realistically bring in and others.

Miller said the commission was still able to weigh in on the project, even though it was first approved by the regents.

"BCPC is an advisory commission to the Chancellor, and there are no rules or guidelines that require BCPC to review a plan before it can go to the Board of Regents," Miller said. "BCPC still has ample opportunity to provide input on the project as the design work has yet to begin."

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